How to Know a Good Bowel Movement-Constipation Demystified

​​​Good morning. I want to talk to you about digestion. Not a very popular topic, least of all constipation.

But what could be more important than good digestion in your stomach and good elimination from your intestines. That's the best way to feel fabulous. Why don't people want to talk about it? It's kind of personal, but I'm going to get over it and talk to you about it today, because I think it's one of the most important topics that we can talk about.

​What is a good bowel movement? How do you know a good bowel movement when you have one?

Basically, the most important thing is to have a regular bowel movement every day. Good bowel movements are one of the things we take for granted. If you have good digestion, you never think about it. I think it's really important to talk about digestion, elimination, constipation, loose stools, and all those other taboo subjects, because they're critical for good health. You can't really feel great unless you have good elimination.

Good bowel movements are one of the things we take for granted. If you have good digestion, you never think about it.

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One formed, normal bowel movement a day is what you want to look for. You also could have two if you have a very high plant based diet, if you still find that it's formed and normal. You also want it to pass comfortably. It should never be uncomfortable, difficult, or incomplete-it will be sticky as well. That's also not a healthy bowel movement. It should never be hard and dry. It should be of similar color and texture throughout and it should be not too thin like a pencil or not pebbles like rabbit turds.Also, there shouldn't be undigested food in your stool. Yes, everyone sees corn in their stool, but other than the really difficult to digest foods you shouldn't see any recognizable food particles in your stools.

​One of the things people don't know about constipation is the relationship between fiber and water. It's great to increase your fiber, but if you don't increase the water too you can actually compound the issues with constipation. No joke. If you take any kind of fiber, especially as a supplement you need to take those water recommendations seriously or you can really stop yourself up. So, take heed and balance your water with your grains, and with all of your other foods. Hydration is one of the most important things in battling constipation, so drink water but also eat foods that contain a lot of water, and congee is a great way to start out your day with a lot of hydrating foods right inside your meal.

Hydration is one of the most important things in battling constipation, so drink water but also eat foods that contain a lot of water, and congee is a great way to start out your day with a lot of hydrating foods right inside your meal.

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​Whole grains absorb water in your system and they also will regulate the fluids in your intestines. If you have water weight, bloating, or you tend to hold fluids in your tissue, like swelling in your ankles, legs, arms, hands, face. Eating a good balance of whole grains can really help that. And when I'm talking about whole grains, I'm talking about grains that haven't been processed at all, not made into flour, where you start with the most whole form of the grain and you slow cook it overnight into congee. It's an amazing solution for digestive distress.

That leads me of course to my favorite topic, which is congee. We're going to talk about how congee can help with constipation. Congee really does eliminate constipation. It helps with elimination unbelievably. It softens the fiber so that it's really actually very soothing and moves through your whole digestive system really easily.

​People who start eating congee regularly are reporting to me all the time how much more elimination they have, how they feel like their intestines are very much more highly functional. And that it seems like there's been a gentle cleanse. That's the best kind of cleanse. You really don't want to do anything so dramatic. You want to soothe any damage that's happened to your intestines from hard foods, things that get stuck, nuts and seeds and things like that can be challenging for the system, because they're eaten hard and raw. So, as long as we break things down and soften them it soothes our digestive system.

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